


Who Do You Belong To

by aperfectpearl (dimensionhoppingrose)



Category: Steven Universe (Cartoon)
Genre: Friendship, In which Bismuth worries about Pearl retaining her agency, Light Angst, Pearl belonged to White theory, Pearlswap theory, Spoilers for Legs From Here To Homeworld
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-01-21
Updated: 2019-01-21
Packaged: 2019-10-13 18:29:17
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,134
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17493035
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/dimensionhoppingrose/pseuds/aperfectpearl
Summary: -Legs From Here To Homeworld Missing Scene-Pearl really, really, really does not want to go back to Homeworld. Bismuth, being the perceptive gem (and friend) that she is, tries to figure out why.





	Who Do You Belong To

**Author's Note:**

> Look I just love Bismuth's and Pearl's friendship, okay? It's so underrated.
> 
> (I'm told when I write them, they come off as shippy. That's not my intention, but honestly, I'm not upset about it either. They're wonderful either way.)
> 
> ((this is not particularly edited))

“ _Then we’re going to Homeworld_!”

Pearl suddenly felt very cold – something she hadn’t thought was possible until that very moment. She repressed an involuntary shiver, losing track of the conversation as her mind raced. _Homeworld._ No. They couldn’t. They _couldn’t_. And to see White Diamond, no less! It easy enough for everyone else, _they_ would be fine – well, Garnet might have some trouble, but she hadn’t been a member of White Diamond’s court. She hadn’t betrayed White Diamond.

White Diamond did _not_ look kindly on traitors.

“Hey.”

Pearl jumped at the large hand that fell on her shoulder. “Sorry!” Bismuth said quickly, stepping back and offering the hand to Pearl instead. Steven was gone, running ahead and talking to the Diamonds. “You okay?”

“Yeah.” Pearl took Bismuth’s hand, letting the other gem help her up. “What’s going on?”

If Bismuth thought it was suspicious that Pearl hadn’t been paying attention, she didn’t let on. “Blue Diamond asked about Pink’s ship, and Steven said something about a desert.”

“Oh.” Pearl looked around vacantly. “That’s smart of him. She never told me exactly where it was, but she did mention something about a desert. I told her it was foolish to put it somewhere so open, but she swore it was too far for humans to get there.”

“Hey, if anyone’s good at burying things, it was Rose, right?” Bismuth joked weakly. Pearl didn’t even try to smile. “What’s wrong, Pearl?”

“What?” Pearl’s head snapped up. “Nothing’s wrong, why would you--”

“Don’t give me that,” Bismuth said, tone stern, and Pearl’s shoulders fell slightly. “Something’s going on. I mean, something _besides_ the two Diamonds being on Earth.”

“Pearl, Bismuth!” Steven called from the warp pad. “You coming?”

They looked back to see a very crowded warp pad, Steven at the front of the group waving them over. “You guys go!” Pearl called back, forcing a smile for the boy. “We’ll be there in a few.”

Her eyes drifted back to Bismuth, and she waited until the sound of the warp pad had faded away before whispering, “There’s something I didn’t tell anyone.”

“Something _else_?” Bismuth asked warily. “What could possibly be a worse secret than Rose was Pink Diamond and _you_ used to serve her?”

Pearl chewed on her thumb, fingers tangling together. “I had another owner before Pink Diamond. And she had another Pearl before me.”

“Right...” Bismuth attempted to encourage Pearl, but she lost the nerve.

“Never mind. Let’s go.”

“Pearl!” Bismuth protested, but she was already hurrying off to the warp pad. Bismuth shook her head, following. She’d get it out of her before they left.

* * *

“Good kid,” Bismuth said with a chuckle as they walked down to the beach. The others were inside, helping Steven and Connie pack. “Not overly bright sometimes, but good kid.”

“Mmm,” Pearl murmured, staring straight ahead, hands clasped in front of her. She looked down at them, as if suddenly noticing the position, and quickly forced them to her side. Bismuth sighed, shaking her head.

“You’re really not going to tell me what else you’re hiding?”

Pearl blushed lightly, looking around. “I… Promise you won’t hate me?” she said in a small voice.

“You know I never could.”

“You say that now...” Pearl’s shoulders fell. She checked one more time to make sure nobody was nearby before finally saying the words she hadn’t dared to even _think_ in the last six-thousand years. “I served White Diamond before I served Pink.”

Bismuth blinked a few times, expression blank. “Uh...” She looked around, and found a log that she immediately dropped onto, rubbing her head. “Okay. Jeez.” A pause. “Pearl, how _old_ are you?”

“Older than anyone thinks.” Pearl sighed, crossing her arms tight across her chest. “Please don’t tell anyone.”

“Hey, it’s not my secret to tell,” Bismuth assured her. “Wait, if you were White’s, and she gave you to Pink, then you...”

“Personally betrayed White Diamond? Yeah.” Pearl laughed bitterly. “I kind of hoped I’d never have to see her again.”

“You can’t go back, then!” Bismuth insisted, jumping up. “What if she hurts you?”

“What if she hurts _everyone_ else?” Pearl shot back. “I can’t just let them all run off, they have no idea what they’re getting into, especially Steven...”

“Steven will be fine, they think he’s a Diamond!” Bismuth pinched the bridge of her nose. “Look, you stay here, _I’ll_ go--”

“No,” Pearl said immediately.

“Why not?”

“Because someone needs to be backup. And I know you don’t want to go.” Pearl dropped her arms to her sides, sighing. “I know the courts. I can help. And if something goes wrong, you know Homeworld. You can be the second wave.”

“And how exactly would I get there?”

“It’s not a perfect plan,” Pearl admitted.

“And what if you get hurt?” Bismuth demanded. “Worse, what if White Diamond decides she wants _her Pearl_ back?”

Pearl winced. “I… I don’t know. But I have to go. How would I explain backing out?”

“You don’t _need_ to explain anything! Stars, Pearl, listen to yourself for a minute! If you don’t want to go, you don’t want to go. I have my issues with Rose, but I can at least say she never forced you to do anything you didn’t want to do. Why would Steven, Garnet, and Amethyst be any different?”

“Because I’ve already lied to them enough!” Pearl shot back. “I couldn’t tell them about Rose, or Pink Diamond, I couldn’t tell them about _me_ , and I’m not ready to go down that road yet. Not like this. It’s too much to deal with, and saving the corrupted gems is more important than anything else.”

“Nothing is more important than your feelings, Pearl.” Pearl didn’t answer. Bismuth watched her for a moment before shaking her head, rainbow curls slapping lightly against her cheeks. “Okay. I mean, you’re right, I really don’t want to go. And I really wish you wouldn’t, either, but I’m not going to tell you what to do. Just take care of yourself, okay? Anyone tries to order you around, just shove a spear through their eye.”

Pearl laughed softly, and Bismuth grinned. They heard the door open, and turned to see everyone coming out with the bags. “Guess it’s time to get moving,” Pearl said. “I’m going to talk to Connie’s parents. They’re probably worried.”

“Yeah. Hey.” Bismuth grabbed Pearl’s hand, gently pulling her back before she could walk away. “Who do you belong to?”

Pearl looked up at Bismuth for a long moment, as if bewildered by the question, then smiled. “No one.”

“Good answer.” Bismuth let her go, and Pearl went to meet the group. Bismuth turned away to stare out at the ocean, not ready to deal with this quite yet.

_I hope you know what you’re doing, Pearl._


End file.
